Brian Laudrup: I understand the protests but they could destroy Rangers title hopes
The fan protests that spilled onto the pitch at Dens Park have the potential to “destroy” the chances of Rangers winning trophies says Brian Laudrup.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst and players such as Allan McGregor reacted furiously when paper streamers and tennis balls were thrown onto the pitch, disrupting the game that they struggled in but eventually went on to win 2-1.
Supporters are outraged at the club’s plans to take part in a friendly Old Firm derby in Australia in November, and ex-Ibrox hero Laudrup can understand their fury but worries about how it will affect the team.
In his Daily Mail column the Dane said: “I think you have to understand both sides of this dilemma. As fans, they are upset about decisions made by the Rangers board and the only way they can show that is at games.
“It could have ended really badly for their team at Dens Park, though.
“And I understand from a manager and player’s point of view that it would have been very annoying having these delays within a game.
“A sentence with ‘Old Firm’ and ‘friendly’ in it does not ring too well in my ears. I also think a lot of people are quite upset about the decision being made without talking to some fans and seeing what the reaction would be.
“Sometimes, the only way for fans to get a reaction is to protest within games but it could destroy Rangers’ chances of having a really, truly historic season if it carries on.”
Recipe for disaster
Fans have been unhappy since the news came out about the November plans.
But the seriousness of the situation increased significantly when the protests when it impacted on a match.
The disruption to the game could easily have lead to Gers dropping crucial points in the title race, as it took a late Connor Goldson goal to come back from a goal down and win.
It shows the strength of feeling among fans that they were willing to take the risk of causing their team problems.
And it certainly succeeded in getting the message across, which is the whole point of protesting.
The Ibrox board have to respond to it in order to prevent further games being disrupted.
But while the club are engaged in a war of words with Club 1872 there appears to be little prospect of this problem dying down.
In other Rangers news, the manager and players were caught on camera expressing disgust at the protests.